We’re having, unless talked out of it, pizza and champagne—We’ve not quite succeeded in having the week off: we did, however, get the chance to look at some bathroom tile and make plans to plug the hog-sized (either porker or Harley, take your pick) in our tub enclosure wall…that’s been there, well, this last year. It’s a major pain, and we’re tired of plastic sheeting. We wanted to wait until we could do it right.
And a happier and most felicitous new year to us all!
by CJ | Dec 31, 2011 | Journal | 20 comments
20 Comments
Submit a Comment Cancel reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.
This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.
Happy New Year! And happy tile installation!
Hog-sized hole. Two thoughts:
1. Porker named Harley, riding a Harley. Could be a Tellarite. Could be something else.
2. Hog-sized hole. Just begs the question, did you see Hogwarts, or Narnia?
;D
* Bonus: There really ought to be a good Monty Python or Doctor Who reference in there. Oh well.
Hogfather 😀
It’s been a much quieter week for me (thank goodness!) than the always intense weeks leading up to Christmas: I took this week off my day job and evening, teaching job but haven’t quite managed to get to most of the personal projects I lined up for myself in advance. Instead, it’s been a week working on the house. We’ve owned it 13 1/2 years but finally had the roof reshingled before Christmas and have had the contractor here this week at 7:00 each morning covering the exterior, wooden frames of the windows.
When we bought the place, the home inspector said we should scrape and repaint the very peeling paint on those frames. Um, fast forward and finally we are covering them (quickly decided upon consultation with the contractor that his scraping and repainting them would only mean we would not do it in the timely. 8 or so year fashion again as is advised) with two different shades of dark, aluminum trim: evergreen and a coppery “terracotta” edging which really punch the windows visually in what had been white window frames on a rather boring white bungalow/sideways cape. So, yes, mission creep esp. since we are doing all the windows — not just the ones which “needed” it, as well as replacing the back door with a rather pricey (blame my spouse: I argued for fewer bells and whistles) new door which won’t show daylight under it or rust all over. But, the house looks so appealing now!
Our biggest treat was planned: replacing the two, dining room windows (one had a whopping huge, defunct air conditioner cut into the frame of the window by the previous owner: said cut explaining why she didn’t just remove it from the window as we had written into the purchase agreement). Instead of just replacing the windows, we built them out 8 inches (like extended eyeballs!), clad the buildout in evergreen and terracotta and then put in the windows. Inside the buildout we will eventually put glass shelves. Outside and between the two window jut-outs we will run a rose trellis of wire and grow a climbing rose!!! Even though there is bare wood, torn molding and jagged plaster right now, we keep returning to this central room in the house to admire the new, airy and well-lit room and dream.
I also just recaulked the tub: that was my chore, not the contractor’s, but there’s been plenty of picking up and decisions to make even if he has done the bulk of the work this week. But now, I am turning my attention to starting the second to last section of my novel (goal of getting that section done by the end of January). And, our cat Froggie, who has been so ill this past fall (after his brother died in August) is now officially two weeks off what had been the third round of antibiotics to shake an infection and so far seems to be eating, peeing and healthly. He’s still on several kidney-protective meds, but still…. He just jumped up on my lap and then crossed over to the soft, blanket covered tall radiator next to me to join the now large “kitten” Mao Tse-Tung for a snooze.
May this coming New Year bring health, happiness and good fortune to all on this blog and their families, human and furry alike!
Oh, good for Froggie! and let’s hear it for Hogwarts, renovations, and new things. Jane’s over there installing the new doorbell as we speak: it’s wireless, and can reach the garage—which means if one of us in the garage (across the koi pond) comes in with a load needing help carrying—a ding of the garage doorbell will awaken the other of us to the need, and life will be good. We have a ‘ding’ on the front door and Winchester chimes on the garage.
Yes, I am starting to hope for Froggie (and fearing that hope at the same time).
We have a bronze doorbell that is a frog: you push his belly to ring. It was a birthday gift from me to my spouse some years ago and equally well-received.
May 2012 be a year filled with promise and joy for all of us!
Have a great New Year! And pizza and bubbly.. sounds like something I’d be having! Just wanted to say I LOVE your books, CJ, and am quite looking forward to the next Foreigner novel! Thanks for that brilliant effort! Just wondering if you based the Atavi on the Elves?
Happy New Year one and all! —
When I wish for more, I don’t seem to get it. So this year I’ll wish for less —
less budgeting.
less scrimping.
less doing without because I can’t afford something.
less hassle.
less ill health.
less rigamarole from everybody, especially the government.
less worry.
less grump and frump.
less breathing down my neck and looming over my head.
less unpleasantness.
less unhappiness.
less of an excuse not to get out and have a good time with friends.
I can get behind this list, and the sentiments going with it.
Happy New Year to everyone! I could do with a long span of months with only ordinary things happening. Calm – that’s what I hope for. I wish us all a peaceful and happy 2012.
Happy New Year to one and all!
No resolutions this year, other than to …… ENJOY!
Three kittehs wishing to go out and chase the squirrels eating up all the bird food. (DREAM ON) It’s looking like a sunny cool day. We may take a walk down to the beaver pond later. Mimosas, big pizza, and russian tea cakes to celebrate!
Happy New Year to all.
@WOL, I think I will try the “less” wishing. It seems quite reasonable.
@CJ, I am beginning to suspect that “pizza” must be a code word for something much more interesting. }:-> May your household be blessed with lots of pizza this year.
Happy new year; may 2012 be a good one, in all respects!
Lol—no, Jane discovered I make a killer pepperoni pizza, and considering how rarely we can indulge, in the Never-ending Diet, it’s been a real frequent go-to meal this holiday season. 😉
And a good and happy new year for us all!
“What makes it so special?” he asked leadingly.
Crust: I start it in the breadmaker, cup of water, tsp honey, tsp salt, 2 tbs olive oil, 3 cups flour including wheat bran. I remove it as dough, stretch to fit cold pizza stone. Load on sauce (I use Classico, as a short cut), pepperoni, cheese, oregano and basil, mozzarella, bake 20 min at 425 on a pizza stone.
up at 2:30 this morning after trying desperately to get to sleep at 10:30PM. Off to our first kendo practice of the new year, “hatsu-geiko”, which for us starts at 6:00AM and goes until 8:00AM, followed by a traditional Japanese New Year’s breakfast. This year, we were just across the river from Cincinnati, in Covington, KY. I’m still going on 2 hours of sleep since yesterday morning.
oooh, what’s a traditional Japanese NY breakfast consist of? had a wonderful “ordinary” breakfast in kyoto once ….
Happy New Year CJ, Jane and all! Resolutions — to lose weight, which I actually did last year. Zumba should help, along with bellydance 😀 . But I was a total slug over the holidays. Thankfully our weather is unusually warm, so we are walking a bit.
Happy New Year to everyone. It’s just an arbitrary date on the calendar, means nothing, really, but isn’t it enticing, all those blank calendar pages, waiting to be filled — with good stuff, I hope. I believe. 2012 will be better!